Indian rupee opened stronger by 45 paise against the greenback on Thursday, as the dollar nursed losses after Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said US interest rates were just below neutral.

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At 09:10 AM, the rupee was trading at 70.09 a dollar, up 53 paise from its Wednesday’s close of 70.62. The home currency opened at 70.17 and touched a high and a low of 70.05 and 70.17 a dollar, respectively.

The rupee strengthened by 17 paise to close at 70.62 against the US currency on Wednesday as global crude oil prices slipped below the USD 60 per barrel mark amid a smart recovery in domestic equity markets.

The home currency extended previous session’s gains on the back of weakness in the US dollar as Powell’s comments were taken by investors as a tip that the rate hike cycle was nearing its end.

The dollar index, a gauge of its value versus six major peers, traded steady at 96.84 in early Asian trade. The index lost 0.54 percent on Wednesday, its steepest percentage decline since Nov 1, reported Reuters.

Besides, fund inflows by foreign investors also supported the domestic unit.

On net basis, foreign funds bought shares worth Rs 811.52 crore, while DIIs purchased share to the tune of Rs 31.21 crore Tuesday, provisional data showed.

In debt markets, the yields on the 10-year government bonds fell 0.4 percent to 7.61 percent after closing at 7.64 percent on Wednesday. Bond yields and prices move in opposite directions.

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